Pasta with Roasted Butternut Squash, Garlic & Lemon

Nothing beats a good pasta dish: It’s easy and tasty and everybody loves it. I like my pasta relatively unadorned—no marinara sauce for me. I’m perfectly happy with some Parmesan, good oil, and fresh basil.

But when I want something a bit fancier, I make this butternut squash pasta, which holds true to my simple-with-good-ingredients rule. Salty capers and pungent rosemary offset sweet chunks of butternut squash. Toss with pasta and Parmesan, garnish with whole leaves of parsley, and you have a dish to satisfy the most discriminating palate.

Serves 4

•   Salt
• ½ medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into ½-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
• 6 garlic cloves, cut in half
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• ¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
•   Freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound spaghetti
•   Grated zest of 1 lemon
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons drained nonpareil capers
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
•   Fresh parsley leaves

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F, with a rack in the middle position.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

3. Place the butternut squash, garlic, and rosemary on a baking sheet and drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

4. Roast until golden and tender, turning once, about 15 minutes.

5. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook it according to the package directions, until al dente.

6. Drain the spaghetti and place it in a large bowl.

7. Add the remaining ¼ cup oil, the lemon zest and juice, capers, Parmesan, and roasted vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with the parsley, toss, and serve.